Craig Daily Press

Everything clicked when Tracy Santistevan got help from someone else.

Certification from the Mine Safety and Health Administration allowed him to do electrical work at Twentymile Coal Co.

However, he didn’t feel he knew enough to call himself an electrician until he went through an apprenticeship program.

“It was intimidating to be called an electrician and still know anything about electricity,” he said.

Santistevan is now a licensed journeyman electrician. He teaches his trade to apprentices on the job.

This fall, he’s faced with a different task: teaching those skills in the classroom instead of the field.

Colorado Northwestern Co­­m­­­­­munity College selected Santistevan to teach its industrial electrician program fulltime this fall.

Santistevan has been a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers for nine years and is Colorado division manager for Devoge Electric, a company based in Salt Lake City.

He said the prospect of full-on teaching, books and all, is a little nerve-wracking.

“With anything new, you always have a (few) reservations, I guess you’d say,” he said.

Still, he said he’s ready for the challenge.

Santistevan is one of two new additions to CNCC’s energy technology department.

Yampa Valley native David May will join him as an instructor for the college’s new automotive technology program.

Both new faculty members are joining programs that were created in response to demand.

Ed Winters, CNCC energy technology director, said the need for electricians in the energy sector is rising.

“There’s an extreme demand for electricians in the mining industry and the oil and gas industry, much like the demand for nursing was 10 years ago (and) even five years ago,” he said.

Likewise, the idea for the automotive technology program was developed last year, when members of the local automotive industry said not enough young mechanics are entering the field.

May, an employee at Wagner Equipment Co., will teach courses in the new program. Classes in automotive technology and other CNCC programs begin Aug. 25.

An 18-year stint at Seneca Mine gave May experience working on heavy machinery and lighter-weight vehicles. He’s worked on mechanized equipment from various manufacturers from Caterpillar to Cummins, he said.

May has worked on the mine’s automotive fleet, he said, which included Ford, Dodge and Chevrolet vehicles.

He also was employed for five years at a Chrysler, Dodge, Ford and Jeep dealership in Steamboat Springs.

May said a faculty position at CNCC came at the right time.

“I was ready for a change of venue,” he said. “I’ve been working in the shop or in the field for the past 30-plus years.

“I’m getting to the point where I’m ready for a change of pace — maybe something on the other side of the glass.”

To enroll in CNCC’s automotive technology or industrial electrician programs, call Ed Winters at 824-1110 or 824-1105.

Bridget Manley can be reached at 875-1795 or bmanley@craigdailypress.com.